Eric Charles Band - 'Can You Feel It?'

posted 7 Sep 2015, 09:37 by Paul Woodward

(Independent)

Review
by Woody

The Eric Charles band hail from Canada and I would
describe them as pop rock with an indie flair. There are quite a few influences
and sounds on display through out the album but there is a strong sense of American
style pop rock along the lines of most noticeably the Gin Blossoms and
occasionally elements of the Counting Crows. But these guys don’t blend in with
the American bands fully because there are some really strong British indie
style quirks to their song structures and overall sound. It’s noticeable but
not over powering as I find the band veer more towards a polished Americanised
vibe than the discordant rawness of British Indie, but Charles is without doubt
heavily influenced by British music.

It’s also worth noting that Harem Scarem’s Harry
Hess has mastered the album and I feel that only heavily emphasises the
smoother melodic elements in Charles song writing.

I really like the edge to Charles vocals, slightly
gritty and he really puts me in mind of Mike Tramp. There was a couple of songs
and I was racking my brain on who he reminded me off and it clicked on a couple
of tracks that they reminded me of some of Mike Tramps recent solo output. Musically
there is some great melodic guitar hooks ‘I Never Did You Wrong’ in particular
got under my skin. There is quite an amalgam of influences as ‘Freak Out’ is
borderline straight up melodic rock and also there are some British Indie
touches and quirks which seem to make them stand out amongst the crowd.

A stand out track for me is the radio friendly ‘Do
It Again’ which has a strong memorable chorus and will definitely get under
your skin. This really highlights that when these guys are a good they are very
good with catchy melodies and enjoyable feel good tunes. Charles doesn’t seem
afraid to mix it up in his song writing even having a rap section on ‘You Read’
which works really well believe it or not!

Eric Charles should appeal to fans of the likes of
Counting Crows as there are strong pop elements to their style and although it
has those British influences unlike British indie it sticks to having a melodic
sheen which far more appeals to my own tastes. It’s an entertaining and
enjoyable album, it’s not going to set the world on fire, but if you dig this
brand of indie pop rock it’ll definitely get you dancing around your kitchen in
your dressing gown on a Sunday morning with a smile on your face!

Track
Listing: Can You Feel It / I Never Did You Wrong / The
Chameleon / You Read / Do It Again / In For The Ride / Freak Out / Time To Move
On / Where Did The Years Go / Small Town / Into You / Come Back To Life